


neptune

by dryadfiona



Category: Lucifer (TV), The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Crossover, F/M, Snowed In, other ppl welcome to read it but the target audience is Me, this is just for me and my arrowverse brainrot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-06
Updated: 2020-11-06
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:00:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,754
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27415378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dryadfiona/pseuds/dryadfiona
Summary: Lucifer's not a fan of the cold. Chloe misses Los Angeles.
Relationships: Chloe Decker/Lucifer Morningstar
Comments: 3
Kudos: 33





	neptune

It starts like this:

An old friend of Lucifer's asked them for help. Lucifer doesn't have many old friends, and he's not in the habit of helping those he has, but if someone calls in a favor, he's not going to turn them down. Still, he's loath to travel so far alone, so he asks Chloe and Maze to join him. As soon as Maze hears Chloe is travelling all the way to Central City, she refuses.

"I don't want to watch you two pining," Maze says.

"We're not pining anymore," Lucifer says, annoyed. "We're together."

"Worse," Maze says, making a face. "Pass."

"You're going to pass up a chance to show Lance that--"

"She knows," Maze says, getting a distant expression on her face. "Yeah. She knows."

That's a rivalry/romance/bounty hunt that's been going on for centuries, and Lucifer doesn't exactly want to step in the middle of it now.

"From all that you told me," Chloe says when they do finally arrive, distracting Lucifer from his introspection, "I thought it'd be...I don't know, crazier?"

"I told you, we're just here to do research," Lucifer says. "Not many people still read--"

"Linear B or something, I know," Chloe says with a sigh. "I thought I'd at least get a chance to see--I don't know, something?"

"Well, I'll hope for a near-apocalypse for you," Lucifer says. He's joking, but he's not, really--it's not as though the people here couldn't handle it. He wouldn't mind seeing something new, after however many thousand years. 

The Central City Public Library has two parts. One is a normal public library, with unflattering lighting and an almost oppressive silence. The other is a short hidden hallway away.

Chloe looks out the windows as they walk over. "It's snowing."

"It is November," Lucifer says, distracted, looking for the entrance.

"Yeah, I just haven't seen snow in ages."

Lucifer manages to find and flip the switch. The futuristic door reveals itself, looking just like a wall.

"I don't think I like Central City," Chloe says after a long pause.

"I much prefer Los Angeles," Lucifer says, looking back at Chloe with a wry grin. Chloe nods in agreement.

The hidden library is from the future--or something. Lucifer's not an expert. All he knows is what Constantine told him--the book is somewhere near the back, the Legends will be disabling the lasers so they can go get it, and then Lucifer just needs to tell them what it says.

He'd really thought the other man would use the favor for something more fun. Passageway into Purgatory, or something. Still, it's not every day that he gets to be around this many old books that he hasn't actually _read_ before.

"I know that look," Chloe says. "Lucifer, you told me the security here has to be disabled by a bunch of--time travellers--" She sounds confused about that, still, but to be fair, so is Lucifer. "We can't just stay here."

"We can take a few other books, though," Lucifer says. "Come on! This isn't even our dimension, and I guarantee no one's been in here for ages." He's not really thinking before speaking, but true enough, the dust is inches thick. "Besides, now a bunch of thieves and assassins know where these books are. Isn't it our civic duty--"

"You're not convincing me to steal a book from another dimension," Chloe says with an air of finality.

Lucifer sighs. "If you insist."

Sure enough, there's a laser security system in the back, covering the books that all the scientists in a hundred years think of as dangerous, seditious, necessary to be confined in the past rather than let loose in the future. It's something of a dumb plan, Lucifer thinks. As time passes, this library will still be there.

Unless, of course, the Legends or the group of fools who normally protect this city destroy it. It's not outside the realm of possibility.

They sit and wait for the security system to be disabled. Chloe keeps shifting uncomfortably.

"It's hardly a heist if Constantine plans on returning it," Lucifer says.

"It feels wrong," Chloe retorts. "I'm a detective, not a thief!"

"Allen's a cop, too, I'm certain he's done a few heists. When _necessary,_ " he clarifies when Chloe shoots him another glare. "Besides, I'm fairly certain this book used to be mine. We're just retrieving my property."

"I already agreed," Chloe says. "It's just--"

"Strange for me, too," Lucifer offers. "I thought Constantine was just going to ask me to help him break into Heaven."

"Not out of Hell?"

"Please, the Legends will do that for him," Lucifer says.

"I...can't imagine that," Chloe says. "I mean, they just--they're so casual about all of it."

"Not really. They spent over a year just trying to track down my half-brother's blood, just to--"

Chloe closes her eyes. "Do not finish that sentence. I'm still trying to wrap my head around celestial stuff, let alone--"

They're interrupted by a particularly loud rush of wind. "I definitely prefer Los Angeles," Lucifer says, frowning up at the windows. The sky shouldn't look that _gray_.

"You're telling me," Chloe says. "How much longer do we have to wait?"

As if waiting for the cue, the lasers all shut off. Lucifer gets up and grabs the book--bound in a dark leather, _feeling_ somehow evil--and walks back.

"We can do the translation back in LA," Lucifer says, and Chloe visibly relaxes.

"Thank--" She cuts off awkwardly. "Well, you know."

Lucifer nods. 

The wind is still _loud_ outside, but the library is quiet. Even the librarians are gone, and Lucifer would be relieved, but--

"The doors won't open," Chloe says.

Lucifer, peering out of one of the windows, says, "Ah. There's a reason I moved to Los Angeles."

Chloe exhales. "Are you telling me--"

"We're snowed in," Lucifer says.

Chloe swears.

* * *

As it turns out, the problem with Central City isn't limited to time travelling scoundrels or a hero making mistakes. Some weather-based supervillain (sort of a dull schtick, if you ask Lucifer) has some issues with Thanksgiving, or something.

"We'll be able to get you out, uh, eventually," says Barry over the phone. "It's just that Cisco's still busy helping the Legends with their thing, and they're not flying back--"

"This isn't even my dimension," Lucifer says. "Or the detective's, for that matter."

Chloe's shivering. It isn't _that_ cold inside, but she's lived her whole life in Los Angeles, and Central City is--

Far from that, weather-wise.

"I'll try and talk Mardon down," Barry says, sounding more and more apologetic as he goes on. "I get that you guys are just trying to help, and it's not even Thanksgiving yet. I mean, even though Constantine wouldn't tell me _who_ you are--"

Something Lucifer agrees with, given Dan's recent panic, and he didn't even have super-speed. 

"--but still. We're working on i--"

The call cuts out, which is less than reassuring. 

"Well, at least we won't run out of stuff to read," Chloe says. Lucifer chuckles. 

The library--both the secret one and the public one--is rather small, though. Chloe mentions how Trixie would love the children's section, what with all the superhero books. Lucifer comments that it's at least a _little_ self-aggrandizing of the city, let alone the museum they built. Chloe isn't familiar with Central City, or any other Earth other than theirs, so she just nods.

They wander down more shelves, Lucifer making loud, obnoxious comments in the romance section until Chloe drags him away, face red. The science section is also pretty well-stocked, with enough physics books that Lucifer might actually find something he didn't already know. At least, didn't know in human terms. After building the universe, there's very little about its laws he doesn't know. (For that matter, not many rules he hasn't bent or even broken.)

They end up sitting in together in the children's section, because despite the garish coloring, the seats are comfier than anywhere else in the library. Chloe's got some cheesy book from the romance section that she said he could not tease her about on pain of death, and Lucifer's working on the translation. They need some element he's pretty sure isn't available in this galaxy, which seems somewhat par for the course for them.

"You're sure you can't turn the heating on?" Chloe asks, shivering.

It _is_ cold, Lucifer notices. Everything's cold, after Hell, but by human standards, it's--colder than it should be.

Chloe says she'll look for coats or blankets or something, and Lucifer goes to try and figure out the heating. As it turns out, the heating _was_ on, but someone had left a window open, snow blowing in. By the time he gets back, Chloe's nestled under a shitty throw blanket and the building is finally starting to heat up.

"This isn't too bad," Chloe says. "It's nice to just--I don't know, relax? It feels like in our universe it's one celestial crisis after another."

Lucifer nods. "I agree." He's already reading one of the physics books. It's unfortunately not anything new to him, but it's interesting to see how the humans in this universe react. Super speed, weather control, fusing into one person with fire powers--he's a little fuzzy on that last one.

Central City is interesting enough, but he does miss Los Angeles.

Of course, as soon as they're finally alright with the situation, Lucifer's phone goes off.

"We figured it out," Barry says, sounding exhausted. "It's--you know what, it's a long story. Cisco's gonna open up a portal for you."

"Alright," Lucifer says. "One of your Legends--"

"Not _my_ Legends--"

"--will have to retrieve the book. The translation's next to it," Lucifer finishes, ignoring the superhero's interjection. "Preferably someone who isn't prone to possession."

"...who did you say you were again?"

"I didn't," Lucifer says cheerfully. A portal opens up, and Lucifer's relieved to see LA's palm trees and bright sun and almost-oppressive heat. Chloe beams, even if she flinches back when the portal appears. "Hopefully we never need hear from each other again."

"Likewise?" Barry says, sounding confused. 

Chloe reaches her hand out, Lucifer takes it, and they walk through the portal home together.

* * *

In S.T.A.R. Labs, Barry stares at his phone.

"Hey, Constantine, the translation and book is in the library," Barry says. "What did you say that guy's name was again?"

"Lucifer?" Constantine asks, distracted.

Barry stops. "Did you say--"


End file.
